Painfully Kind
by Arian Rose Light
Summary: Axl is having a really bad day. So when sets out into the city, he meets a girl named Arain, who knows exactly what he's going through. Things get bad though when Axl heads back to HQ, and lets just say, only Arain can save him from himself. Rated T for slight blood. Megaman X timeline


**Me: Okay, okay, this is my first "Axl's Pain" fic and I feel awful already. Axl's my favorite character so he's NOT getting a shitty ending. I love him too much to write a fic where he dies, or Red Alert caused him pain and... and... *starts sobbing the corner***

**Axl: Are you okay, Rose?**

**Me: *looks at an injured Axl (he just came back from a mission :D)* WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!**

**Zero: Rose doesn't own any of this except her OC. All rights to CAPCOM**

* * *

So far, Axl's day had completely sucked.

Training had been going great, with Axl _finally being _a member of the Maverick Hunters (even if he only was a rookie for now) and all, until X had come in. Axl had never really understood why X had such a dislike to him; but the moment the S-rank Hunter had walked through the doors and spotted Axl, he scowled heavily. Axl had been taken aback; what had he ever done to X (you know, besides cause a miniature war and all)?

"Pay attention, Axl!" the instructor shouted and Axl was shaken into training again as a laser was fired at him. He dodged just in time and shot at the instruction drone. It sparked as it started smoking. Bull's eye. The instructor smirk, before finally noticing the S-ranked, blue-clad armored commander, and saluting. "At ease, Bolt," X said, sending a small smirk to the reploid man. He relaxed and grinned, before turning to the other rookies, who were still firing (and missing horribly) at their drones. One was clipped in the shoulder, causing him to yelp and for X and Axl to wince.

X glared at the red-haired reploid through the corner of his eyes as he rushed out to go check on the injured cadet. He was glaring as if it were his fault the rookie was shot.

He sighed as he exited training an hour later, between having an actually training session, and dealing with his superior's glare. Who knew being glared at could be so tiring?

He walked to his room and locked the door behind him, an action he didn't take unless he wanted to be alone. Axl wanting to cry; he'd tried so hard to make amends for leaving Red Alert three months prior. He hadn't _wanted _to cause trouble, that had only been an "added bonus" as Zero had called it. He said if it weren't for the auburn, X would still be out of duty.

"Sometimes I think I shouldn't have ran to the hunters..." he muttered to himself as he clutched a pillow tightly. Reploids had no real tears, besides X, but his had dried up long ago, even before Axl had come along. According to Zero that is, so the information could have been a bit fuzzy.

"It's no damn fair!" he screamed as he launched a pillow at a wall. Maverick signs had been on the low, and it was driving him crazy. Shooting was Axl's life. He was the "Trigger Happy" reploid of him, Zero, and X. He cringed. X was someone who just couldn't seem to please. He thought of the human world, yet he didn't think of how Axl felt. Even if he did, he would have lied anyways, like he had with Zero.

Zero had knocked on Axl's door a month ago, and the conversation was still fresh in Axl's mind.

* * *

_Axl stared at the normally red clad hunter in front of him, who was stripped of his armor and wearing normal civilian clothes. Axl couldn't help but think it as rare to see the S-ranked hunter so relaxed. "Can I come in?" Zero asked. Axl nodded mutely and backed away from the door to let his superior and friend in. "Thanks, I just_ wanted_ to talk to you for a second," Zero stated as he sat down on Axl' desk chair._

_"Well, you wanted to say something? I've got training in five, and if I don't get there on time, Delta'll kill me," he joked, trying to lighten the truth. It was true though, his instructor, Delta of the Seventeenth Unit, was hard when it came to being on time for training. Zero cracked a smile as Axl sat down on the bed and placed his head on his hand. "Whatcha' need, Z?" he asked._

_"Well... you seem to be holding up okay, but I just wanted to make sure. You doing okay with the hunters?" Zero asked cautiously. The smile on Axl's face faultered slightly and he forced out a chuckle. "I'm doin' great, but what do you expect? I am me after all!" he replied cheekily, even though he felt like he wanted to cry. The hunters and rookies constantly talked about him behind his back, and he knew they knew he knew. No one bothered coming near him, not even Delta unless it was training. He had no friends to put it simply._

_Zero cocked a brow. "You sure? No past feelings-" Zero was just pushing Axl, wasn't he? "-no regrets from Red Alert-" He had a ton of those, circling to where he killed Red. "-and none of the other rookies and hunters being hard on you?" He forced a smile to his face as he said, "Nope! None of that. I've moved on!" What a lie. Since he was young, Red had taught him to be a good liar, just in case he ever got caught during a mission and was interrogated. Axl couldn't help but feel guilty._

_"X isn't bothering about anything? Or just being an ass in general?"_

_Axl felt himself freeze up as he forced out, "Nah, I don't see him very often, believe it or not," in a light tone. Zero eyed him, as if trying to sort what the lies were and what the truths were. To try to make himself sound more believable, he rubbed the back of his head, a relieving habit Tonion had taught him. Zero eyed him again, as Axl glanced at the clock. He cursed and raced from the room. _

_From the other side of Hunter HQ, Delta tapped his foot impatiently as he screamed, "AAXXL!"_

* * *

Axl wished he'd told Zero that X hated him and that no hunter would talk to him unless it was absolutely necessary. Axl detransformed from his armor and into his usual civilian clothes as he walked out of his room, and out of HQ in general. _I just need some fresh air, _he reasoned. _Just need to clear my head. _As he walked down 5th Avenue he spotted a small cafe', one which wasn't crowded, and headed over.

He sat himself down in a two-seater by a window and stared out at the foot traffic and car traffic. He hefted out a sigh as he continued staring. "You okay there?" someone asked, and he turned to find a girl about his age. She carried a tray with some fruit, cookies, and a steaming cup on one hand as she set it down on his table with the other. He blinked. He didn't order any of this. In fact, he hadn't ordered ANYTHING.

"Don't worry, I'll buy it," the girl added as she smiled down at him. Axl realized she was very pretty and was his age. "I'm Arain," she introduced (**AU or what, people? Arain in this is actually based on my first MMX OC, so she's going to have red hair like Axl [she was kinda' based off him]**). "And you seem to be a little down." She tucked some of her short but spikey auburn hair behind her ear, as she stared at him with one blue eye and one hazel eye. He chuckled.

"Life isn't going to easy for me," he agreed. "Being a hunter suddenly seems impossible." The girl's eyes brighten in what looked like recognition as she smiled. "Yeah, it probably is. Tell me, is X-er-_Commander _X bullying you?" she asked, slipping up at Axl's commander's name. He rose an eyebrow as Arain glanced over her shoulder before sitting down on the chair across from him. "You don't mind do you?" she asked hesitantly as he shook his head. She relaxed in the seat and passed him the cup.

"Hot chocolate," she informed. "Works miracles on depression and sadness." Axl took a sip, and, sure enough, almost instantly felt better and happier. He eyed Arain, who seemed to have this hovering look of sadness in her eyes. "So, how's better a hunter, so far?" she asked, leaning in closer. He glanced down.

"No one talks to me, not unless they have to," he started, "and X positively _hates _me! If anything goes wrong, he instantly blames me. Whenever I see him, all he does is _glare _at me! It's becoming a horrible habit of multi-tasking between dealing with his glare and training. I don't get it..." He put his head in his hands. "What exactly am I doing _wrong_?!"

Arain sighed heavily as she gazed out the window for a brief moment before turning to him. "I want to tell you something," she stated. He blinked. "Well... more like show you something." Arain lifted up her sleeve, looking all around her to make sure no one was watching, and showed Axl her tattoo. Her _Repliforce _tattoo.

"Wha-"

"I'd been a member of Repliforce before they were... disbanded. I'd served under Colonel and was given the mission to watch his younger sister, Iris." Her eyes clenched shut in pain. "I became her friend, quite easily, and what a horrible friend I was. I couldn't even save her from herself." Axl glanced down. He knew exactly how he felt, having murdered all his friends at Red Alert. In fact, he'd even read about Repliforce in an old newspaper. Now that he thought of it... "I had to change my name, especially when I quit the Maverick Hunters." Axl blinked at her.

"I always made sure to show my tattoo proudly when I had been a member, and always held my head up. That resulted in me being friendless and ignored constantly. Commander X was extremely hard on me, and finally, after the sixth war, I couldn't take it and was planning to quit when Commander X beat me to it. He fired me from duty, told me I wasn't up to Hunter standards and that being a member of Repliforce bothered the others on my team." She smiled sadly at the table. "So naturally I made a run for my room in tears. Even though I'm a reploid see, I can still cry using metallic tears, but I also have one heck of a right hook." She chuckled weakly.

"I pretty much punched my wall into submission." Axl's eyes lit up and said, "THAT'S why X said I'd feel right at home in my dorm!" He scowled. "What a jerk he can be."

Arain shook her head. "Don't be mad at him, you have a better chance at being a hunter he'll tolerate than I did," she said.

"Says you, I was from Red Alert."

Arain chuckled as she said, "Well then, I guess we can be brother and sister in arms. But I want you to tough out hunter training, though, for me. Do what I couldn't." Axl nodded blankly as she stood up. He grabbed her arm as he said, "My name is Axl."

Arain smiled. "And my name was Jenaveve of Repliforce. Nice meeting you Axl." She scurried away as she went back to work. Axl smiled slightly.

"Jenaveve..." he muttered with a small smile. "What an interesting name." As Axl picked up the customer's copy of the bill, he noticed the scribbled handwriting that he could defiantly associate with Jenaveve that said, _Say hi to X and Zero for me. _He grinned, deciding that was exactly what he was going to do.

* * *

Axl walked through the hallways of Hunter HQ, the light outside almost completely dark, taking notice that everyone seemed to be in a frenzy as they rushed in and out of rooms, as if looking for something. People were muttering to themselves, with a fear in their eyes that only Zero could place, and possibly X. Axl rose an eyebrow as he made his way to his room, walking up several flights of stairs. He was exhausted; 5th Avenue was at least seven blocks out of the way of Hunter HQ.

He was about to type in the password to his room when something red slammed into him. He was slammed against the wall by what he recognized as Zero, who had a look of panic and anger on his face. "WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU!?" the S-ranked hunter demanded. "WE'VE BEEN LOOKING EVERYWHERE FOR YOU!" Axl blinked in surprise. They'd been looking for him...?

"I was just out walking, geez, it wasn't like anyone was going to miss me..." he muttered. Zero flinched. A blur of blue passed by, then noticing the two, skidded to a stop. Axl blinked as he realized he was looking at X.

"Where the hell were you!?" X repeated in anger. Axl winced under his gaze, something Zero didn't miss. "Just outside at a cafe'..." the auburn-haired teen mumbled as he pushed Zero away and trudged past X. "Where're you going now?!" the blue hunter demanded. Axl scowled at him, something that took X and Zero by surprise. "I'm going to my room, thank you very much," he stated angrily. "I've learned a thing or two today that I'm not exactly sure what to think of because of it." The two older hunters shared a look as they glanced at each other.

Axl gained an annoyed, angry smile as he said, "Oh, and Jenaveve says hi." The two hunters froze, as Zero sent X a questioning stare of shock. X's face grew red as Axl slammed the door to his bunk and locked it. They weren't too sure what to do. Axl wasn't the type of kid who they thought got... angry. They shared a look, both knowing something was horribly wrong with the young cadet.

* * *

X walked down 5th Avenue, in civilian clothing, looking for a cafe' of any sorts. An hour and a half after Axl had decided not to talk to anyone, shutting himself up in his room, and X telling Zero what _really _happened to Jenaveve (X had said she'd died on a mission with him and that he hadn't been fast enough), X decided to look for the old Repliforce-Hunter member.

He'd been wondering around when the small cafe'-named _Hunter Paradise_-came into view. He stepped inside and little bells rung above him. "I'm sorry, but we're clos-"

The young waitress stopped, then scowled heavily as she glared at the hunter. He wouldn't have recognized her, she'd changed so much, had it not been for her mismatched eyes. "Jenaveve," he said, his tone making him sound as if he were looking at a ghost. The girl scowled again as she said, "I go by Arain now, _Commander _X!" He flinched, though he knew he deserved this cold treatment.

"Jena-Arain, I'm sorry. But you need to understa-"

"Just go, I don't want to talk to you. You've ruined enough lives already, and ruining them still. Did you change the Maverick Hunter motto by any chance? 'Maverick Hunters; breaking your self-esteem one rookie at a time.'" X winced. "I'm guessing you've talk to Axl?" he asked.

"Don't even speak his name! You've done enough to him already!" she shouted. She glanced over her shoulder briefly, as if checking something. X felt like he'd been slapped. "Don't give me that look," Jenaveve hissed quietly. "That your innocent in all this. You broke me, and now you're trying to break Axl. You want him to become a cold, heartless bastard like you then, huh? Is that your plan, because if it weren't for me, I bet you Axl would have considered suicide by now. I bet you he already has."

X's eyes widen, and with a start he realized how badly he'd been treating Axl ever since he'd joined. He felt himself grow real guilty, real fast. _Damn it, she's right. I do suck. I should have known earlier, _X told himself. "I have no right to ask this-"

"You probably don't," Jenaveve agreed. "But go ahead. I want to know what stupid excuse or question you come with. Oh, and did you ever tell Zero about me?" X flinched and Jenaveve smirked a bit. "I'll take it you did."

X took a shaky breath before continuing. "-but can you help me-"

"No," Jenaveve said sharply as she turned around. "No, no, no, no, NO! I will not help you even if my life depended on i-"

"-with Axl...?"

Jenaveve froze in her rant and hesitated. She turned to him slowly as she asked in a small voice, "What's wrong with Axl?" X shifted uncomfortably. He clicked open his receiver and checked for updates. Nothing. "It's been about two hours now, and Axl has left his room or talked to anyone, besides maybe yell at us. If you don't step in, we really could loose him," X stated. Jenaveve gave him a bland look.

"Who's fault is that?"

He winced.

"Can you just..."

"I'm only doing this for Axl," she stated as she walked passed him, taking the only coat from the coat rack. She turned back to face him with piercing one-blue-one-hazel eyes. "I just want you to promise that I can visit him whenever." She walked out of the cafe' heading down the street as X stared at her figure disappearing into the shadows of the night. He let out a sigh of relief. _Maybe I hadn't screwed up completely..._

_"I just want you to promise that I can visit him whenever."_

His smile of relief turned to one of horror. Zero was going to _kill him_.

* * *

Arain walked down the silent halls of Maverick Hunter HQ, hunters and rookies alike stopping their foot traffic to gaze at her. She was in her armor now, just to spark memories in their eyes about Repliforce and how they treated her. Her footsteps echoed the hallways' corridors as she stopped at one particular door, the door one of the rookies had squeaked out. She got rid of her armor, not wanting to be recognized if she awoke the red clad hunter sleeping next to the door, even though she knew well her eyes would give her away, and as to not want to scare the red-haired boy beyond the door.

She knocked on the door quietly as she said, "Axl? It's me, Arain."

She heard the sound of something clattering to the ground, before it being scrambled back up again. She narrowed her eyes as she got no response. This was Axl's room, correct? She scowled, thinking maybe the rookie had given her the wrong room. She glanced at the blonde hunter before telling herself that this _was _Axl's room. He just wasn't responding.

"Hey, Axl, I just want to talk to you," she cooed quietly. She heard hitched breathing through the door's crack, causing her eyes to narrow further. Something wasn't right, that much she knew. She knocked again as she said, "Axl?"

What she heard next made her freeze for split second before bursting the door down.

She heard the sound of a gun reloading.

"AXL!" she screamed, waking up the red and blonde hunter as she burst through the door, (didn't X say his door was locked?) tackling Axl to the bed, him letting off the gun in a misfire that lodged itself in her shoulder. She bit her lip and growled as she glared into Axl's eyes. "What the hell were you thinking!?" she screamed at him. "Taking your life is _never _the answer! NEVER!" He flinched under her gaze, then snapped open as metallic blood dripped onto his face from Arain's shoulder. She winced, pain clear in her eyes.

"A-A-Arain-"

"_Don't _you say _anything_!" she hissed at him, tears falling down her cheeks. "Did that promise we made earlier mean that little to you Axl?" she asked quietly. Realization and guilt entered Axl's green orbs as he remembered the promise he'd made. The sound of someone-someone_s_-entering the room filled their ears as X and Zero gazed at a bleeding Arain and scared-stiff Axl.

"What the-"

X nudged his friend and prodded his gaze to the gun that laid tossed away from the two reploids. "Don't you ever, and I mean EVER, try to do that again!" Arain wheezed as her grip on Axl loosened. "EVER!" The two hunters could only watch as the two, young reploids cried.

* * *

Arain-shoulder patched and smiling-stared at Axl through the one-way glass. After the... incident, one month back, Arain was pleased to see that Axl was attempting to make friends and try his best. The making friends part: failing horribly, but at least he now had Arain, Zero, and every now and then, X. Well, X had at least stopped glaring menacingly at the poor kid. Axl was undergoing special training now by X himself, X not wanting to risk Axl think he was being ignored or hated. The hunter was at least going a bit easier on him.

"Jena-"

"I go by Arain now, Commander Zero."

The blonde hunter nodded as he walked over and stood besides her. "Thank you," he stated, not surprising her. She glanced at him and the hard look in her eyes softened a bit. "If it weren't for you..."

"Axl would be dead," she finished. "I know. I was the one who was shot." As if to emphasize she held her shoulder and moved it around a little, wincing. Zero cracked a smile. "You don't need to call me Commander, you know," he pointed out. Arain smirked.

"I know, but I don't want to freak out the rookies anymore than I already have," she said. "It's going to take some time," he started, "but I think X and Axl will really grow on each other at some point. I think we'll become a great team." Arain sent him a smile. "I know," was all she said.

"You can join the hunters again, you know. I'll make sure you get in and get you paired up with Axl. Everything could be..."

"Normal?" she offered. He shook his head. "I don't think I'd belong with the hunters, honestly. I don't think I ever will. I'm Repliforce through-and-through and there's nothing no one can do to change that," she answered. She smiled. "But thanks for the offer anyways. I think I'll remain a bystander for now, or maybe I'll become X's personal baby sitter, as to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid to Axl or any other rookies." She nodded to herself before stepping back.

"Where're you going?" Zero asked with a raised eyebrow. Arain sent him a look as she opened the door.

"Work, where else?"

* * *

**Wow, that was extremely hard to write, you know that? Jenaveve was my first OC, who I love by the way, and was a member of Repliforce, under the command of Colonel. And yes, she was entirely based off Axl, with her spikey hair, and was originally supposed to have green eyes too. It was supposed to tie into the fact of why Zero was a bit more lenient with Axl, than X was. Also, Jenaveve was originally supposed to LOATH Zero, for killing Iris and Colonel, but after working with him during the 5th and 6th war, she realized he was just as upset as she was and forgave him. **

**I tried writing a fanfiction for that-I failed miserably. **

**Did you like this? I hope so, I tried so hard for it to end well. If you comment and ask, then MAYBE I'll consider writing an AU fanfiction for Jenaveve. If you guys want it. Okay, thanks for reading and can't wait to update Second Rookie, BYYYYYYEE!**


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